Given that I’ve been talking a lot about cool, stealthy staff weapons, I thought i’d throw one more sword type into the mix, designed along similar lines to the venerable shikomizue. Especially since I recently encountered a rather beautiful specimen of such a sword. It’s only fair that I share:

The oh, so elegant sword you see above is called a shirasaya. The shirasaya, which means “White Scabbard” in Japanese, is a style of sword that features a minimalist theme with regards to the way the grip and scabbard is designed. A traditional shirasaya features a smooth grip with no fancy fittings, in hardly any fittings at all, save for the bamboo pin(s) used to secure the blade in the grip. No guard either. The scabbard is usually equally plain, though they sometimes have information about the sword written on them.

The shirasaya above is unique in that it is lacquered in black, which runs counter to the traditional “white scabbard” design theme, but it is still smooth, and devoid of all fittings, except, of course, for the bamboo pin used to secure the blade. A sleek, beautiful fusion of traditional shirasaya style in modern black.

The shirasaya, while beautiful, suffers from a flaw that is common to pretty much every other staff weapon I have mentioned in previous posts. No guard and a poor grip. This causes two problems. First, because there is no guard, your fingers/arms/etc. no longer have any protection from a sword strike that slides down the blade towards your hand. combine that with a smooth grip, and you no longer have a positive way to prevent your hand from sliding up toward and/or onto the blade should a mishap occur.

Both issues pose rather large problems from a combat perspective, providing all the ingredients for a rather nasty accident. However, given that staff weapons were meant foremost for stealth, and easy concealment, as opposed to uncompromising battle ability, I suppose they are flaws that a person using such a weapon could learn to live with.

I thought I’d also show you an example of a more traditional shirasaya. At least on the outside:

Now while the weapon above may actually look like a standard shirasaya when they sheathed, is actually rather unique, in that it has two swords instead of the single blade of a standard shirasaya. What is even more interesting is that these swords are sheathed at the same end of the saya, side by side. A very interesting, and quite useful design.

Based on it’s appearance alone, you might not guess that there were two swords hiding in that innocent looking piece of wood. I love stealth…

*Update*

A commenter (Muchas gracias, Miles!) recently pointed out to me that the Shirasaya design was intended primarily for storage, as opposed to stealth. I also discovered that it has traditionally been used to transport high quality blades to and from the polishers, or for shipping a blade to a collector who intended to install their own custom fittings.

Having never purchased a sword without the fittings attached, I thought this was interesting, as I have run across this design a gazillion times, but for some inexplicable reason, never really took the time to properly research it’s origins. Oh. well. I guess I’m slipping in my old age…

Anyway the light wood used (often magnolia) was usually specifically selected for the purpose and cured for many years to remove all moisture, and the lack of finishing, or more precisely, the lack of the traditional lacquer finish, was by design intended to allow the saya to “breathe” and allow moisture to escape, so that the blade would last longer in storage.

In retrospect, looking at the design, this all makes perfect sense, though I will also point out that the design is of such significant aesthetic value that it has been subverted for “practical” use by many sword designers, and even traditionally finished, such as the first blade featured above, which is technically a violation of it’s original intent.

So while similar in many respects to shikomizue, it was originally intended for a completely different purpose. Though aesthetically it’s still a sweet as all get out design… Even if it’s not really particularly stealthy…

You’re really frightening me. The reason the shirasaya mount doesn’t work well in combat is because it’s NOT “a style of sword” at all. It’s ‘pajamas’ to keep a valuable blade safe and un-rusted in storage, as it’s healthier for the blade than a real tsuka and saya would be. Outside of manga, nobody would be crazy enough to try serious cutting with a blade in shirasaya mount. It’s not meant to be a shinobi-zue variant.

Ah, thanks for the correction. I had not considered that about the shirasaya. I always thought that the were simply another shikomizue variant. But that makes perfect sense, the design seemed very poor from a combat perspective, though shikomizue/shinobizue are not that much different.

The funny thing is, some shirasaya are finished just as ornately as regular saya. And there is really nothing preventing someone from properly mounting a sword in a shirasaya styled saya/tsuka, and simply not applying the lacquer finish. In fact, a shikomizue designed for stealth should not have a lacquer coating because that would give it away would it not?

There are practical considerations in the blade and making (all ignored by modern companies just selling them as if they were ready-to-use, and admittedly a shirasaya is a lovely sleek thing). The wood of a shirasaya should be left unvarnished so the blade can breathe and no mildew or rust will form on it (old Japanese swords are very susceptible to that) and some trees have natural oils that also keep the blade healthy. Good ones are made from magnolia wood, which is aged 10 years to get rid of any sap or moisture. But since they must be left uncoated, they can’t protect a blade outdoors, from rain or snow soaking through the wood.
The high-end forges still sell some of their blades that way so a customer can buy custom mountings and fit them himself- or find antique mountings, like a beautiful Edo tsuba, and create a katana that has a new blade but real koshirae. Before the Meiji Restoration, when it was still legal to wear swords in public, the samurai typically owned one of each type of saya per valuable blade. The shirasaya was used for storage, while the koshirae fittings were used when the sword was worn in public. This site gives more detail:http://www.scnf.org/saya.html
So a shirasaya is essentially a practical way to keep your high-carbon blade alive over the centuries. The shinobi-zue resembles it, but uses a straight narrow blade- more often a yari spear blade, as they fit well- in a bamboo or lacquered walking stick. Much less conspicuous back in the days when most people carried such things:-) But really, nobody can look at a shirasaya and not guess there’s a sword in there- a katana or wakisashi-shaped blade just doesn’t lend itself to concealment. Good walking sticks and canes were often finished with a Japanese lacquer so they wouldn’t necessarily give away the fact there was a blade inside. I suppose it would depend on whether one was trying to look innocent or was in full stealth mode and trying to avoid any reflection- in which case the innocent-looking shinobi is no longer helpful (what am I doing on the daimyo’s roof wearing all black? I’m just a poor blind peasant, you see.. I lost my way”).
Sorry about the word count. Cheers:)

(What am I doing on the daimyo’s roof wearing all black? “I’m just a poor blind peasant, you see.. I lost my way”)

OH, man, that cracked me up!! LOL

But yeah, you are right, a Katanas curve simply does not lend itself well to concealment within a straight staff. Unless it were seriously cut down in length. But even then, from a shinobi perspective, I would think a shikomizue hiding a longer, straighter sword would definitely have been preferred for the purposes of appearing innocuous.

But that also means that technically, the black shirasaya above was intended more for active use rather than storage, as it lacquered. Which would make for a very poor Shirasaya (as if being a poor combat blade wasn’t enough). From an aesthetic standpoint however, I do like the simplicity of the design. I only wish it could be used this way without the risk of damaging oneself…

But thanks, for the link, no worries about the word count, IMHO it was for a worthy cause 🙂

Does anyone know where I can buy cheap shirasaya mountings? So without the blade itself? I like to buy a katana (at Cheness, you should definetely add that to your weapon sellers), but I need a shirasaya mounting. Can anyone help me out?

I must take issue with the mention of shikomizue used as ‘stealth weapons’. The ‘ninjato’ as we know it is a 20th century American creation and has no historical basis. Let me put it this way: which would be more stealthy? The samurai who look like the two hundred other samurai in town, the one or two that have straight swords, or some guy prowling around in all black?

There are historical basis for shikomizue, however. There was a period of about thirty-five years during the Shinto period called Kambun-Shinto. During this period, straight swords were forged. I have heard a couple of different explanations for this. The first of these is that during this period, swords were worn more vertically and so the straight swords fit better and were also easier to draw out of the saya. Another is that they were forged in imitation of European blades. It is actually more difficult to forge a straight sword using the Japanese clay hardening and quenching process, because the hardening of the edge as the blade is quenched is what causes the sword to curve. So blades made in the Kambun-Shinto period had to be forged with a slight re-curve so that the blades would become straight during the clay/quench. Due to the lack of sori (the blade curve) they were not the best blades for Japanese sword techniques, and fell out of popularity rather quickly.

The other period when these swords were used was the Meiji Restoration. It was illegal to carry katana at that time, so some samurai had blades forged and placed in ‘stick’ fittings, or shikomizue. Some straight blades were re-fitted, coming from the Kambun-Shinto period. Some regular katana were also placed in shikomizue koshirae (fittings) during this time.

As Miles stated, shirasaya koshirae were never meant to be used for anything more than blade storage. Because there is nothing to reinforce the tsuka (handle) outside of the mekugi pin and the glue seam, they are very likely to crack and break when swung. If you study a katana in regular koshirae, you’ll notice that there is a metal cap at either end of the tsuka, a very tight cord wrap over the length of the handle and occasionally the handle is completely encased in samegawa (rawhide rayskin) underneath the ito, or cord wrap. All of these things help to reinforce the tsuka and if it does fail, it’s less likely to go whirling off into space and hurt someone, because there’s tension in the ito and the fushigashira (end caps). Swinging a blade in shirasaya koshirae is dangerous at best and should not be performed.

@Sean
My apologies, I don’t really know where to buy premade shirasaya mounting. You have to remember that shirasaya were traditionally made for individual swords, and the process was akin to regular saya making, with the shirasaya custom fitted to each sword, so you would literally have to make your own shirasaya.

Traditional shirasaya was also made from a porous, breathable wood, which tended to be softer than regular saya or tsuka fittings, so you could probably buy a blank of some porous softwood and carve one out yourself if you were so inclined…

@Midori
I think you are looking at things entirely wrong. In feudal Japan, yes, Samurai were a common occurrence. However do also remember that they were the equivalent of nobility, so they would *always* attract more attention than say, a farmer carrying a walking stick, who would, more often than not, be entirely ignored. So apart from some rather specific circumstances, why would a ninja generally choose to disguise themselves as a Samurai?

Also I beg to differ with you about Shikomizue. Shikomizue were, in fact stealth weapons. The example you have provided, the sword ban of the The Meiji Restoration, is actually a prime example of a time when Shikomizue were used to covertly allow sword carry. If that is not a “stealth” application of the shikomizue, then nothing is.

So far as the straight sword “Ninjato” thing, I think you are partially right, though I think you are also confusing the Chokuto with what I will *loosely* refer to as Ninjato. Chokuto were straight swords that were made that way, and were not made for ninjas, or covert use, or anything. They were usually a result of either cost concerns, or the technology of the era.

However a ninja would have used a straight sword for two reasons: First because they were not differentially tempered, and therefore cheap. Secondly, because they would be easier to conceal in a staff (again we go back to the covert usage of shikomizue) than a curved sword.

So while the modern day depiction of the ninjato is be flawed, I do not think it is entirely inaccurate.

I also agree with you on the Shirasaya front, though I think you also have to acknowledge that many modern shirasaya designs are shirasaya in a aesthetic only, and do not all share the same weaknesses of the traditional shirasaya design.

I.E. there is a big difference between a shirasaya designed for storage and a shirasaya designed with functionality in mind.

There are many modern day methods of creating strong, secure shirasaya style mountings that are fully functional, whose only real weakness would be the lack of a guard. That said, everyone should be cautious about automatically assuming that a shirasaya styled sword can be used as a regular Katana, as it can be very dangerous to do so.

Wow I love reading your posts and reply’s Phyreblade, I swear you should be a teacher, that would be the most awesome history class ever. “Today kids we’ll be talking about Japan” *Pulls Samurai sword out from behind desk and proceeds to cut a watermelon in half, in the air, in one swing* “But first, anyone want a snack?” 😀

haha, i’ve personally been the subject of a Phyreblade rebuttal and i can honestly say that i saw that coming the moment i started reading midori’s post. Phyreblade does his homework people. it’s not gonna be THAT easy to overthrow his iron-fisted rule over this board. keep up the good work phyre.

Shirasaya are plain wood mounts for a single blade at a time. If they are colored or lacquered in any way, they are no longer shirasaya. They are nurizaya, which is a mount for use. Shikomizue, whether lacquered or not, are considered nurizaya even if all there is is wood. Shirasaya are not a mount for any sort of use, even modern shirasaya (provided they are true shirasaya). The only thing holding a real shirasaya together is a single glue seam. It is not safe to use because of the fact that it’s not supposed to be used. Like a car with no brakes.

Chokuto and Ninjato are not the same. For one, chokuto existed and there is plenty of evidence to support this. They are one of the first blades to be found in Japan as Kantotachi, the other old blade style being Warabiteto. Ninjato are Hollywood. There is literally zero historical evidence of Ninjato. Even for things like shikomizue, the swords were forged and folded. Farmers tools were made in the same way (laminated, at least), so there isn’t really a way to say it costs less. Even the edge hardening was present on a lot of farming equipment, as many old kama display soft hamon.

Also take into consideration that the cost of a cheap sword during the Sengoku Jidai was one that could be reached by almost anyone. If a ninja was being paid anything at all, he could get a properly made sword with no questions asked.

Shikomizue are concealed weapons, but the only stealthy thing about them is the weapon itself. I think the term “stealth weapon” is one that’s definition is lost in semantics.

Samurai, while ranked higher than many, were not all nobility. In fact, many lower ranking samurai were just looked at as townspeople with benefits. Another thing to note is that swords were not reserved to only the samurai. Look at the battlefield. There were a lot of ashigaru who were FAR from the samurai class who carried swords. Merchants could carry waki or tanto, as could doctors. Even farmers could acquire a sword by simply picking one up off of the ground after a fight, and this is well documented by the number of swords found in old farming towns.

Finally, about the whole ninja dressed as samurai as opposed to farmers. While a farmer could wander around without being noticed more freely than could a samurai, a samurai would have considerably less problems getting close to places where people of importance may be simply due to the class difference.

There is a lot more that goes into Japanese swords (and culture, for that matter) than many people realize.

(PS: Should probably pick images of better swords when writing an article…I could find some for you to use, if you wanted them.)

@Hyoujinsama
I like that you have a much better grasp of this topic than most. And the vast majority of what you have said about Shirasaya and Nurizaya is true. However I think you are also ignoring some specific cases where they aren’t. For instance, a Katana properly mounted and finished in an unlacquered or uncolored shirasaya style tsuka and saya would not fit the definition of a Nurizaya.

Technically they wouldn’t be traditional Shirasaya either, as they would be properly pinned, the saya would rely on more than just a simple rice glue seam, etc. However, besides the lack of a guard, they could be used as any other Katana, and, for lack of any better description, I can’t think of anything else to call them but shirasaya.

So far as the relationship between chokuto and ninjato, I consider Ninjato much like the Norse legend of the Kraken, a giant multi-armed sea monster. It is widely accepted today that what the ancient Norse sea men referred to as the Kraken was most likely a giant squid.

There is much documented evidence of giant squids, much like Chokuto, but none of the Kraken, beyond hearsay evidence, and massive hype, much like Ninjato. However, just because I have no evidence of the Kraken, does not mean I can assume that all those Norse seamen were suffering mass hallucinations, and the Kraken could absolutely *not* have been a Giant Squid.

I think it is the same way with the Ninjato. The Ninjato may be a fictional creation of old folk lore and modern Hollywood, however I do not think that means that medieval ninjas *never* used straight swords. There were many good reasons for them to do so, and Chokuto and/or shikomizue are the only swords that meet those specifications. So I cannot be so quick to dismiss the idea that, perhaps what we currently, and admittedly incorrectly, call Ninjato, were actually Chokuto or Shikomizue.

Beyond that, I agree with you about a ninja choosing to masquerade as a Samurai in order to take advantage of the class difference, that was one of the specific cases I was referring to in my last post. However I doubt that would be an ideal long term modus operandi for a ninja. Popularity and stealth generally do not go hand in hand.

As a side note, it is trivial to find better swords. There is a sea of high quality swords, with pics to match, I could post about. But that is really not what I like to write about. I prefer the quirky, controversial, weird, and just plain out-of-left-field weapons. Hence, the poor image selection… It cannot be helped.